Back in September I wrote several posts about a stash of Warner Club News magazines I came into featuring rare photos and information about the Warner Bros. Cartoon Department. Here’s one more. The photo above comes from the February 1958 issue and it shows the Commercial and Industrial Film animation crew in conference - left to right: Chuck Jones, Leo Salkin, Lou Scheimer, Maurice Noble, Owen Crump (producer), Carol Chaka (secretary) and Richard Hobson (executive). Dave DePatie (not pictured, was a production coordinator and editor in this division at the time).

In 1956, Warner Bros. created the WBTV Commercial and Industrial Films Division which produced dozens of films - live action, animated and sometimes combining both. When animation was needed it was coordinated through the Cartoon Department, and utilized the skills of their veteran animators and directors. They created TV spots, many made exclusively for sponsors of Warner Bros, TV shows - for Eastman Kodak, Gillette, General Electric, Nabisco, Ford, Kelloggs, Crest, Camay, etc. Perhaps their biggest project was the Bell Systen Science series. My guess is that in the photo above was taken during the production of Gateways To the Mind (1958) which contained this scene below (which I found on You Tube, forgive the pitch to purchase the DVD, I’m not selling, but you can purchase it here):

Another great photo from the Warner Club News. Here’s layout artist and background painter Robert Gibbroek from the December 1959 issue. He’s a real unsung hero of many classic Warner Bros. cartoons. His work appears in such great films as One Froggy Evening, Fast and Furry-ous, Operation: Rabbit and The Mouse That Jack Built to name but a few. Note the image below left (click on thumbnails to enlarge) where Gribbroek worked his name into the background of One Froggy Evening. His fine art was outstanding too (see examples below).

More rare pictures from a stash of Warner Club News I picked up last week.

The Warner Bros. Cartoon Dept. had it’s own building, with its own gate and sercurity on the main lot in Burbank during the 50s and 60s. The building is still standing today. I’m not sure who’s occupying it this year, but it was most recently the headquarters for producers, writers and staff of Everybody Loves Raymond.

Another great photo op from the pages of The Warner Club News (December 1961). Mel Blanc and Elmer Bernstein! Blanc is still recovering from his January 1961 auto accident, receiving The Golden Carrot Award, which is pictured up close and in color in my book Looney Tunes: The Ultimate Guide.

This is an excerpt from an issue of Warner Club News, the studio’s in house magazine, from February 1958. Each issue had a column, aptly titled “What’s Up, Doc?” written by a member of the cartoon division staff. I picked up half-a-dozen issues from the late 50s, early 60s at the recent Cinecon and I’ll be posting bits and pics from these issues all this week. The cartoon being discussed above was released in April 1959. To be included in the February ‘58 magazine, I’d place the recording session in January ‘58 or possibly December ‘57.

Isn’t this photo terrific? Where are the original negatives and prints to photos like this? I’ll have to check with Warner Bros. Archives. These are gold.